Photoshopped Pics not matching items sold

Starley, Lash looks wondaful in that pose, eh?

I have that pose, it's a Poser default I believe -- Ulrika uploaded it... I'll drop it on your Inv in like... uh... one minute. Look for it.

nice job on that background!!!!!!!!!!! wow, thats a great pic



what she said.

I wish that sellers would not photoshop at all, except for cropping, etc. Why make something prettier than it is? The customer is only going to be disappointed.

Please, do NOT tell me just to ask for a refund if I don't like something. The last time I did that, the person went completely psycho on me. I argued with them for an hour, and didn't get my money back--and it was a lot of money in this case. Never again.

Asking for a refund is embarrassing for me and embarrassing for the seller. Most of the time it is not a lot of money and you feel silly asking for a refund of L$40 or L$150. It's just that it all adds up over time. I have probably something like US$100 worth of stuff in my inventory that I will never use. Its rather frustrating.

You shouldn't ever be embarassed to ask for a refund. The vast majority of sellers are happy to give them (myself included). Word of mouth is everything here and I want happy customers out there. Sometimes you never know how you'll like something until you see it on your avatar. If you don't like something you bought from me I'd prefer to give you the chance to have a refund or exchange for something that you do like so that you'll walk away happy about your purchase. If a merchant is rude or refuses to work with you then you know not to give them your money again. I think you'll find that's the exception and not the rule.


Starley and Neph, *blush* Lash, your hair is awesome.

Lash,

Sorry you feel this is unnecessary griping, but some of us who have spent a lot of money and have gotten screwed. As Kim and others have said, not all sellers are nice about returns.

Starley's example showed that her ad was enhanced to bring out certain things in the product, but her box art was the "real thing."

From what I can tell, your 1st pic is the "real thing" and the second is the embellished ad. If you are putting the first pic on the box/vendor, then there is no problem. If you are using the 2nd pic on the box, that is wrong, since the hair colors in those two pics are very different. Could you please clarify which pic you use on the box/vendor?

Starley, I had to make a small change to #1

1. Photoshop is fun (DON'T use it to change the appearance of your product in box pics)
2. If you are unhappy with a purchase, IM the creator.
3. If the creator is a turd, tell your friends.
4. Starley had too much wine with dinner.
5. Chip is the r0xx0r!

Neph,

I know you agree with the 5 statements above, but you have to realize that you are the only person in SL who is totally exempt from all of this. I know that I will buy whatever male clothes you make without making more than a passing glance at the picture.

Haha hmm...Nephi is very talented no doubt but I wouldn't go as far as to say she's the only person totally exempt from this and I don't think she'd agree with you either. We have several very talented designers who are just as trustworthy when it comes to quality.
As I said before we've all made mistakes and I don't think anyone wants to be put so far up on a pedestal that they can never stumble without falling to their death. Sorry if I'm speaking for you here Nephi but that just kind of rubbed me the wrong way lol.

This is the first time I've seen someone openly be this sycophantic. Just, wow..

Then you must not read the responses to her clothing announcements in the new product forums. Dozens of gushing reviews that say just what I said.

Maybe it will score me a free suit, maybe it won't, but the praise was real.

I would have to agree with some of the above feelings, Alan- as much as I apreciate the confidence and sentiment, it is hardly fair to the other designers to hold me to a different standard than you do them. It's not something I do myself, and very unfair to everyone involved.

Flattering to hear, though, I am glad that you do enjoy my work.

Well I see where all this is going and it's sad to see so much back-biting. I guess I had better nip this problem in the bud before the "boxtop police" come knocking on MY door.

I have attached a completely untouched photo of a recent *PREEN* outfit AND the associated box for that outfit. You will notice that the box has been altered slightly to highlight some features of the outfit that may be lost when displaying a 3D texture item on a 2D medium.

*PREEN* will NOT be accused of misrepresentation of clothing or unsavory business practices of ANY kind. Thank you!

Personally, you are the only seller that I would trust when the box art has obviously been enhanced, because I know the product will be extremely well made. This is just my opinion and should not be the rule. I don't normally buy women's clothes, so I can't say anything specific about those designers.

(Note to the other places I buy clothes from regularly, your box art is just fine.)

I know that making clothing is extremely difficult and requires a lot of skill. The only item of clothing I ever made was a t-shirt and that took me two hours and I had to make it black to hide my seam issues.

We in SL don't like to wear the same thing every day and have no skillz are at the mercy of the designers. Thankfully, you all are a very talented bunch and offer great clothes at reasonable prices. As a fan of advertising, I enjoy seeing the marketing efforts that have grown up around this industry.

Since we don't have the ability to try it before we buy it, it makes the box/vendor art that much more important. If that pic of the item has been altered in a way that affects the color/seams/smoothness of the item, then the designer has gone beyond marketing and into the realm of fraud.

It is repeated that we can just ask for a refund. I know that sounds all well and good, but I know that some people buy more than a couple of items a week and they don't want to spend half their time online trying to track down the seller for a L$100 refund. And, unfortunately, we get to deal with some sellers who are rude or get bent out of shape. There are a lot of people who would rather eat the $L than get in a shouting match over 40 cents.

We are all working on trust here. I think that the sellers need to understand they have a responsibility to their customers to treat them honestly.

I thank those designers who have posted saying they do the right thing. I am glad you are out there and hope people patronize you accordingly.

On Preview: Aimee, I wasn't trying to create "Box top police," I really wasn't.

Now that I have seen the kind of trickery you are capable of, I can only call for a complete boycott of *PREEN*. You can tell that the hair on the box top pic is several shades lighter than the first pic.

Wow!

Alan, most people use retouching of photos because our pictures of our items and word of mouth are what sell the product.

Like tor, neph, starley, etc have stated, snapshots alone can look drab, you have to jazz it up. Now, why someone would take the trouble to fix a flaw in photoshop afterward instead of fixing it in photoshop to begin with is kind of strange.

I retouch my pictures, but I'm lazy as well and use a macro to auto-contrast and add a logo, and fun frame shading! Don't lump us all into a big ball of nasty please. Also, talk to the people you feel 'done you wrong' and try to get some restitution! I promise, aside from Chip Midnight, we don't bite!

The BESTEST reasons I've ever heard of why someone wanted a refund are:
1) I liked the left shoe better so I bought two pairs hoping to wear one of each
2) I didn't realize the girl on the cover meant that it was for women
3) The skirt made me look fat

LOL Aimee omg. Okay so it comes with the model, can I resell her or is she no transfer?

Oh and mis I might actually have one to top yours, someone purchased a pair of capris from me. I then got a request for a return because "I don't want my legs to show". If you don't know what capris are, they are pants that cut off a little below the knee.

hehehe, yes but I'm old and have a weak jaw so I barely even leave a mark

She'll be anything you want her to be, baby.

I have my police scanner on right now incase the ps-police are out and about, but here's an example of what most designers do to spruce em up..

Well there is thing called popularity... nm I am just going to shut my mouth on this one before I piss off more people than I did at the Fashion Expo.

All kidding aside, this is exactly why people don't like telling designers that they have a problem,.I know I wouldn't want to be mocked in an open forum. I hope you gave them their money back.

You all can let this go by as undue hysteria, but what about those newer folks who give you a shot, then go elsewhere afterward because they can't afford to be tricked.

And you know there won't be any PS police as we cannot name names and an abuse report for this sort of thing would be laughed away. As a consumer, all I am asking for is an honest chance to see what I buy before I buy it. I don't think that is asking too much.

Seriously... lol I don't mock people in forums but that particular request was a bit extreme and I'm sorry you don't see the humor in it. I'll refrain from saying things like that as to not offend anyone else who might be afraid to ask for a refund now. I think you can go a bit too far on the sensitivity meter here. Some of us are *trying* to lighten the thread up a bit as it's starting to turn into something that could be taken very harshly.

Ahem, oh and yes she did get her money back. I wouldn't want to be considered unfair on top of being a fraud .

Like starley pointed out, we would be more than happy to show you the items in world, especially in cases of high cost purchases.. and skins.. if there's no demo, you HAVE to do it.
I'm sorry that someone ripped you off.. but I think what the designers here are saying is that we would be happy to help you out if you feel that something was mis-represented... if need be fix any problems you notice.

Reasons like 'It's not what it's represented to be' and "I just don't like it" are a whole 'nother animal than the funny reasons we've heard over the past year or so.
and Tor is right, you pretty much openly insulted every SL designer, save one, so forgive us for attempting to lighten things up a bit.


--and my funny reasons got refunds as well!

Sorry, as a complete dork, my social graces aren't up to speed. I didn't mean for my praise of one designer to be an insult to the rest of you. She is just the only person I know who enhances that I have bought from and still trust. I don't normally buy women's clothes, so I don't personally know the rest of you.

I went too far trying to make a point.

Really sorry that was taken wrong.

I hope that doesn't overshadow the very good points that I and other consumers have made in this thread.

Alan, it's funny (to me at least) how the one person you exempted from your accusation of trickery is the very FIRST person who came to my mind as a perpetrator.

I want my features to be highlighted too. I'm going to buy this product!